Where's Josie?

i know not everyone reads the comments, so i'm going to go ahead and post this here. if the people who have josie are in fact animal lovers with only the best of intentions for josie, they have no reason to fear or fight us. we're animal rescuers...no one is more devoted to the safety and well-being of animals than we are. without seeing josie in her home environment, we have no idea whether or not she is being well taken care of.

what do we want from these people? we want the opportunity to do a home visit. that's all. it's standard practice in the rescue world, and what would have been done for any family who wanted to adopt josie from the rescue group (not shelter) she was headed for. we have no interest in their money. no one who has been involved in the search for josie stands to benefit financially from finding her. there are vetting and pull fees to be reimbursed, but i will do so out of my own money if i can know josie is safe. and no, i can't afford it and yes, i've already spent hundreds and hundreds of dollars on the search for josie. *that* is what you do when you truly love an animal.

without the opportunity to do a home visit, we have no way of knowing that she is not being kept chained outside, that she is not being deprived of medical care, that she is not going to be sold to research. we simply can't take someone's word in an email that she is loved and healthy. furthermore, although the pictures we have seen do seem to be josie, there are a few inconsistencies we can only verify by actually seeing the dog they have. we would hate to think josie could still be out there and we weren't looking for her because we thought she'd been found.

if the people who have josie have nothing to hide, they should allow a home visit. that's all we want.